Alright guys I've mentioned before that my monte has been making a whining sound. To me it sounds like the power steering pump whining. It honestly sounds comparable to a supercharger whine somewhat just not quite as high pitched. When I turn the wheel hard I'll hear the whine and the steering wheel vibrates somewhat and the play in the steering wheel will loosen up for a second or two and then go back to its normal tight feel. I can also hear it whine when I accelerate and turn. So anyhow today it had been whining and my service engine soon light came on. About ten seconds later I lost power. The electronics were still on and the car was still in drive but the engine was off. I also couldn't steer while all this was happening which is understandable if the engine was off. I fired it back up and parked it and am waiting for a tow. When it sat there and idled it shook somewhat. What's going on. Could the power steering pump have gone out? Could this have caused the engine to shut off and then shake somewhat when I fired back up and let it idle?

 

It could quite possibly be the power steering pump Thomas...
Or possibly you have an issue with the rack? when things bind up anything is possible to cause it to stahl out..... any chance you smelled anything like
burning rubber? (serpentine belt).... Maybe to it could also a clogged line to the steering pump?.... Tha shakeing on the restart is a sure sign somethings not right.... Maybe the power steering pump has a leak and now its empty...But I don't see why it would stahl out the motor.... Maybe that whineing sound is the transmission?.... It could be that its bound up some how? or maybe something wrapped around one of the drive axles? Rodent, or someother kind of animal? Maybe a rag or even some plastic baggy?

Pls keep us informed as to what the problem is/was.

 

Guys this has turned into one of the worst days of my life. First off they said that honestly the whine I hear is somewhat normal from that type of power steering pump system at the age it's at. So suspension wise its old but okay. The reason I couldn't steer was cause the engine died even though you could barely tell the difference cause it runs quiet normally anyways. It wasn't tell later that I remembered when I looked down I had no rpms even though the radio and everything else was on. The engine simply cut off and thus no power steering when it is off. Had it towed to the Chevy guys and even though the service engine soon light was on they couldn't find anything. So the mechanic and I took a test drive and around 50-55mph the rpms started to rise and fall and then the thing just would come in and out of gear no matter what speed. And soon after the engine cut off and thus I couldn't turn it again. They think that the transmission is bad. They also said the engine cutting off is a separate issue and they need to run more tests to figure out what's wrong. I honestly cried when they told me that because I don't have enough money to put in a new transmission. I love my Monte Carlo. To some people a car is a car but for me that white Monte was a part of me. It was like a best friend. It was my first car. I have so many memories in it. I asked my gf of 4 years to be my gf while I was in that car. From graduating high school to going to NASCAR races to taking my Monte to the drive in I never thought this would happen. I could have had any car but I specifically choose a Monte Carlo. I put so much work, effort and time into it. If your not a car guy you just can't understand. It's like the movie by Stephen King Christine. The one where the guy and his car share a connection. I just told my Monte it would be okay and I said a prayer that hopefully its not as bad as it may seem. She's always run perfect and I have been so easy on her. She only has 111,000 miles on the bulletproof 3800. I just don't understand how all these problems can happen in one day. The thought of maybe having to send Monte to a junkyard and people just tearing through it makes me want to cry. I cherished that car. Praying that it works out somehow.

 

Hi Thomas, have them check your cooling system for leaks. I had a similar problem when there was a pin hole in my lower radiator hose. Air would Ger into the system and cause the coolant system seize up. The engine would then try to compensate by increasing RPMs. Up to 3000 RPMs and hole there. Soon said refilled the system and bled it. The problem went away.
The wining doing mat just be common. Mine does it a nd there are 2 3.8 Grand Prix, and aother Monte SS I see often that have that same sound.
I'm not sure, But I think your Trans will not cause your engine to cut off unless it seized. And if it did I don't think the car would start again cause your Trans would still be lock in gear. Mind you I'm not a Trans guy. It just makes sense..

 

I'll tell them to check that thanks JC. It's weird the car will run but once you get up to about 50 it bucks a lot and the rpms jump up and down like it can't stay in gear or something. Then it just cuts off. Could it be the trans sending a bad signal to the computer and that is making the engine cut off? Then again it first cut off yesterday in the parking lot at 20 mph although when it did that I didn't feel it jumping out of gear or anything. I'll certainly point out your suggestion. Thanks again man. Should find out later today what is wrong for sure.

 

So they said they believe its the fuel pump. They ran a test and my monte is only getting 31 psi of fuel pressure when they said it should be getting 41 and that 31 psi is more than enough to cause the car to cut off. They said that's why it's jumping because its starving for fuel. It jumps mostly on acceleration when it can't pick up fuel. It also idles rough now so it makes sense. They changed the fuel filter and that put it up to 33 psi but it still is dying. I could maybe try to limp it home and maybe change the fuel pump but I have never done something that extensive. They want $950 for the pump and $250 for the fuel filter and the diagnostic tests they have run. I'll be out $1100. Should I try and do the pump on my own? Regardless I owe them $250 for what they have done so far.

 

It's not Hard to do it yourself. As long astounding can get the car Hi enough of the ground and you have as little fuel as possible in the tank. If you do decide to do it yourself you may want to get the locking ring that locks the pump into place to. Use it if you have to. Return it if not. Remember a gallon of gas weighs 8 pounds!

 

So I got them to go down to 600 for the fuel pump and then I get the car back and they tell me it runs fine but it has a radiator leak so I go to a local shop and got a new radiator put in for a good price. Five miles down the road it starts to jump and buck a little bit. Only around 55-60. It's also very sluggish too. It's nothing fuel related this time cause everything has been changed. My service engine soon light is still on. He has a code for mass air flow sensor low voltage or something like that. He said the code could be wrong because chevy scanned it too and never found any code. He says he wants to clean the throttle body intake before touching the MAF sensor and that to save me money he will get one from the junkyard just to see if that fixes it. If it's not the throttle body or MAF sensor then he says its something electrical. I've spent $1100 this week on it and if it's electrical then I think I'm just gonna have to move on. I don't have the money to chase an electrical gremlin that we may never find. Really hope it's not an electrical problem. Any ideas guys?

 

Have your cooling system bled. There are a lot of bucks and crannies for air bubbles to hide. Air bubbles can cause the cooling system to seize. This happened to me. There is a bleeder valve on the thermostat housing. It's 2 brass fittings. Let the engine cool, then remove the small brass nut and run the engine. When the thermostat opens the sure will come out. When you see coolant flowing out your done. Top off your coolant and you should be good to go!

 

JC he did bleed it that's why I'm so confused.